Last night I had a great sleep at the train station the guys there even gave me a bed, woke after 12hrs sleep ish. During the night the station master gets up and tells everyone to stay inside from the broken English I thought it was just bad weather but he was making hissing noises no idea what he was on about. This morning when I went outside to pack the bike he should me foot prints in the sand/Mud I then twigged some sort of animal on the prowl last night. I was in my sleeping bag so there was no way I would have been going outside. Cheers station master. Brew on pack the kit and I’m off. Bloody hell its cold this morning -2 and the Beemer’s don’t like starting at that temperature. Back on the same track as yesterday it’s about 35Kms to Beyneu. Still not able to get above 35Mph the track is badly rutted and muddy. I then come across the fist obstacle a truck is stuck in the mother of all holes, makes me laugh. And another truck stuck on another track they have started using. So I now off road in the true sense of off road to avoid the chaos and boy is it slippery. Ok back on the track and it’s not long before another big bomb crater again off the track to bypass it. Eventually the broken tarmac starts, thank god for that. I stop just past a bridge for a short break. As that has been an intense 45 nims. I reach Beyneu for the first fuel stop and it’s taken 1 ½ hrs to ride 35kms. At Beyneu not much happening so I push on towards Kulsary my route was to go towards the Caspian Sea the back inland to kulsary but when I was having a brew and warming up in a roadside café a couple of truck drivers asked me where am I going I should then on the map and I got the idea not a good route due to the weather. The front bottom half of one of their trucks had been torn off so I stay on the black stuff to get to kulsary. I reach Kulsary after a couple of hours of side wind that was biting cold, it’s a bigger town with lots of people walking about but too cold to explore so I push on towards Atyrau the side wind stops blowing from the left as the road has changed direction and I’m getting from the right so at least I am now cold on both sides. No really it’s not that bad I’ve got all my warm kit on heated grip on full, music playing and cracking on. When I reach Atyrau I planned to stay at the Guns & Roses hotel so I arrived there with Sweet Child of Mine by Guns& Roses playing through the GPS. But they have no secure parking so I’m off to find somewhere else. I check out the Marriot but they want $400 for 1 night. You can imagine my thoughts on that so I’m off to find somewhere else. I check out several others but lots of $$$$$. I then Check out the Kazakhstan Hotel its looks ok, I ask secure parking they say yes, I ask internet they say yes, I ask how much they say 10000 (can’t remember what it’s called I call it ‘’thingy bobs’’). So I say I’ll stay. Where’s the parking, the security guy leads me around the back and show’s me a set of very steep marble stairs with 2 marble ramps at the side and he point’s go up. This would have made a trials rider thing twice. And it took 2 attempts to get up it, bugger me that was steep but it’s in a nice warm place so at least it fill fire up nicely in the morning and that’s another day done.

Awesome Peter!! Loving reading this - I remember chatting to you about the crater1 I bet it was a fantastic thing to see - I still find it hard to imagine what it is really like. I love the Gecko T-Shirt in the one photo!! Ride Safe!!

Reply

SteveP

3/26/2012 12:57:38 am

Hey Pete - sounds like you are having a ball - a great life experience to add to all those you already have - when you looking to get in to Germany? Got myself some wheels so if i'm not away with work I'll come and meet you if you want - let me know
Stay safe mate